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<title>眩しいStarlight by PinkLotus (EspurrsVena)</title>
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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29943837">眩しいStarlight</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/EspurrsVena/pseuds/PinkLotus'>PinkLotus (EspurrsVena)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>JO1 (Japan Band)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Confessions, Fluff, M/M, Stargazing, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, and our favourite manajam too, no beta we die like real men, some other members mentioned, there might be some renkumi in it</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 23:54:47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,477</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29943837</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/EspurrsVena/pseuds/PinkLotus</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Sukai had never seen the true beauty of the night sky and Shosei wants to change that</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kinjo Sukai/Ohira Shosei</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>眩しいStarlight</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Is that how the night sky actually looks like? It’s pretty.” <br/>It was nothing but some random comment Sukai had made when they had been in the middle of the planning for their concert, but even after weeks it didn’t want to leave Shosei‘s mind.  <br/>He loved watching the night sky and the stars since he was a child. At the place where he grew up, they were visible each night - if the clouds didn't ruin the fun - and he knew all the names of the constellations before he knew the names of his elementary school classmates. <br/>It had taken him until middle school to realise that this view was a blessing.  </p><p>He and some of his friends had taken their new classmate to their favourite stargazing spot. Even until this day Shosei couldn’t forget the awe in his new friend’s face when he spotted the true amount of stars that grazed the night sky.  <br/>The boy had just moved from a bigger city to Kyoto and while Kyoto wasn’t exactly the countryside, it often felt like that especially in the area where Shosei lived. There were no skyscrapers and or other huge man made lights that took over the night sky. The stars still reigned uncontested over it and the boy wished that it would never change.  </p><p>Osaka, the city where Sukai had grown up, wasn’t located far from Kyoto, but it felt like a whole different world. Tall buildings, LED screens and noise everywhere. The apartment areas were a little more quiet, yet there were still much more dazzling and louder than the place where Shosei had grown up. Back in the days when he was still an EXPG student, he had visited his friends from the dance school in the city and when he returned home in the evening, barely a star was visible. In a way that view made him feel lonely.  <br/>When he took a walk in Kyoto at night, the stars were like countless eyes watching over and protecting him. But in Osaka all of his distant friends stayed hidden because human made lights had taken over. </p><p>Still, Sukai’s statement surprised Shosei in a way. Besides him growing up in a big city, he had always thought that Sukai had a somewhat countryside upbringing. He had often talked about playing a lot outside and catching bugs. Yet he seemed to have never seen the true beauty of the night sky. Due to his own childhood it seemed like a paradox but their dorm proved that you could catch a lot of bugs in the city, too.  <br/>For some reason, it made Shosei want to show Sukai the true beauty of the night sky.  </p><p>Actually, it was surprising that Sukai’s statement had such an effect on him. Various other member’s had also commented that they had never seen a sky full of stars – Ruki even bought a projector that showed all the constellations in his room. Or Ren and Takumi often visited the planetarium to watch the stars together.  <br/>Yet it wasn’t the same as the actual night sky. A projector or a picture could never capture the true beauty of it and that’s what he wanted to show to the other one – because Sukai was someone who reminded him of it. </p><p>First, there was his name – Sukai. This was obvious of course, yet he was named for the reflection of the sky in the sea of Okinawa – in a way it was still hard for Shosei to believe that Sukai was half Okinawan because he was so different from Sho – and not the night sky. Also, there was Sukai’s member colour - black just like the night in Osaka that didn’t show any stars. Yet his beautiful voice was like the stars. Jokingly Sukai called himself the miracle voice and in a way it fit. His voice lit up the room like the stars did with the sky. </p><p>Maybe it was all those things combined together that made Shosei want to show him the true beauty of the stars. If there was someone who had to see it, it would be him. Yet such things were easier said than done. </p><p>The chance to see the stars in Tokyo was even smaller than in Osaka and Kyoto itself was about 400 km away. They would need at least two off days to go there and their current schedule was way too packed for that. Well, there was the planetarium option, but first it wasn’t the same and second, he didn’t want to run into Ren and Takumi accidentally. They would assume it was a date – finally – while Shosei still wasn’t even sure what he felt for Sukai.  </p><p>He liked the other one and yes you could call it more than friendly feelings. But was it love already? Shosei had no idea and, in a way, he was scared to think like that. There were enough reasons not to feel anything deeper than friendship. Not that Sukai wasn’t an amazing and handsome guy, but it was the point that they were both guys and in the same group. It was better not to think too deep about his feelings for the slightly taller one. </p><p>For some time, he pushed back those thoughts but then one night while he was editing some photos, he stumbled across a picture of a beautiful night sky. The tags told him that the picture was taken in Hakone – which wasn’t that far from Tokyo if he remembered the map of his current living region correctly. <br/>He had missed to see the sky filled with stars himself, too, thus he started to plan.  </p><p>If he wanted to go, only one day off was necessary or rather having the afternoon off on one day and the noon of the next one – something that was certainly possible. He needed even less off time if he could take one of the company cars, but their CEO was still strict when it came to this – no driving themselves because there was the risk of an accident. Yet, Shosei didn’t want to bother Naoto or any other staff member because they had even less free time than the members.  <br/>Also, in case he took Sukai with him, it would be awkward. Like knowing your parents follow you on a date with your crush. </p><p>But it wouldn’t be a date with his crush, right? Just him showing something to his best friend. Seeing the stars decorating the firmament was an experience you had to have in life and he just wanted to be a good friend and help Sukai to gain that one. That’s all, wasn’t it? </p><p>The next day, Naoto presented them with their upcoming schedule and to Shosei’s surprise it offered the perfect opening for such a trip. A quick check of his weather forecast app also told him that the nights were expected to be clear in the upcoming days, so it was possible – if it wasn’t for Shosei’s cluelessness how to approach that topic. </p><p>‘Hey Sukai. You mentioned ages ago that you never saw the true beauty of the night and I want to show it to you, so do want to go with me to Hakone Wednesday night?’ somehow felt wrong. It felt too direct like he was asking the other one for a date which wasn’t his intention at all. However, he did want to go with Sukai. Even as nothing but friends.  </p><p>“Hey Shosei. Why are you clinging to your phone and stare at your weather app?” Shosei winced when Sukai suddenly talked to him. “Sorry, did I wake you up from your daydreams?” The brown haired one seemed sorry for causing that reaction and started to gently rub his back.  <br/>“No, it’s okay. I was just... planning.” <br/>“What were you planning?” </p><p>That was Shosei’s chance, wasn’t it? Now he could subtly drop his idea and invite Sukai along – as friends and no strings attached. It did cost him some courage to voice it however. “Well, I kinda thought that I wanted to go stargazing again... not the one Ren and Takumi do at the planetarium, but real stargazing. It has become warm recently and there is this free period. And Hakone is not too far...” <br/>“Ah I remember you mentioning that you often did it when you were younger.” <br/>“And you mentioned that you have never done it before, so eh, do want to come along?” </p><p>Shosei felt awkward when he shouldn’t feel awkward. He had just asked his friend whether they would spend their free day together. Something they had done countless times before. It wasn’t supposed to be anything special. They weren’t anything special – yet. </p><p>“Sure. Let’s ask Naoto to buy us train tickets. And that he picks us up later that day.” <br/>“Don’t you think a hotel or some other place to stay would be better?” <br/>“What if someone finds out?” Sukai had a valid point, yet Shosei wasn’t too happy about it. <br/>“I don’t want to bother him that late.” <br/>“That’s my Purin.” The sweet smile that Sukai showed in that moment made Shosei’s heart skip a beat and there was this tiny voice in his head telling him that he should finally admit his crush to himself. </p><p>Eventually, their manager agreed to Sukai’s idea. He was always working late anyway and felt better knowing there was no potential chance of someone finding out about their little trip. They had until 1 am to catch a glimpse of the stars, but then Naoto would pick them up at the bus station near the lake.  </p><p>For more than one reason Shosei felt taken back to his teenage years. Not only because a supervising adult would pick him out but also because his feelings towards Sukai made him turn more and more like a love sick boy. He had no choice but to admit the feelings to himself – there was no point in denying those anymore – but it didn’t mean that Sukai ever had to know. At least that was his plan. </p><p>The day came and during their schedule before Shosei couldn’t think about anything but what was coming up later. The whole morning, he had worried about his outfit already. How to dress appropriately for work, but unsuspicious enough to walk around at a tourist spot later while being chic enough for a date – a friendship date of course. <br/>He wished he had it as easy as Sukai who looked handsome even in a simple outfit made of a white shirt, skinny black jeans and a leather coat. </p><p>In the end he settled for his usual style – a hoodie that helped him to hide his hair later and skinny jeans. Safety and staying warm was a priority and Sukai had seen him in worse states already. Also, it was just two friends going out anyway, so nothing fancy was necessary. Still, he felt underdressed for the occasion. </p><p>Their plans had of course reached the other members, too. Yet to his surprise no one even tried to tag along. Shosei was glad about it, but maybe one more person could have saved him from any further awkwardness.  </p><p>Yet after their scheduled ended it was only Sho approaching him and Sukai. “We still have those blankets from KCON. They are not that huge but I think two should be enough so that you can sit down on the ground.” It was a sweet gesture from their leader and Shosei thanked him before putting the blankets into his bag. “Also, I prepared some sandwiches for you.” <br/>“Sho, are you our mother for real now?” Sukai had to laugh about the mother hen side of their leader, while Shosei once more felt like he was taken back to his teenage years. Mama Sho sent them off and Papa Naoto would pick them up later. </p><p>“I just don’t want you two to eat junk food all day again.” <br/>“Yes, mom. Thanks mom.” Sukai stored the food in his bag and finally the two made their way towards the station. Of course, they made sure to get their daily dose of junk food or rather junk drinks before boarding the train.  </p><p>For their journey Shosei managed to score the window seat, but Sukai was fine with that – he wanted to nap. With Sukai sleeping Shosei looked at the scenery passing by. With every minute it became less skyscrapers and more nature and in a way it felt like his journey from Osaka back to Kyoto. He hoped that the night sky would be equally pretty.  </p><p>When they arrived at the station below the mountain and took the bus to reach the sightseeing and stargazing worthy areas it was still afternoon and there was still a lot of time left until the sun would disappear to hand over the reign of the sky. Both guys hadn’t visited that little town before, thus they joined the crowd of other day tourists exploring it.  </p><p>The shrine was pretty – but not as beautiful as the ones in Kyoto – and the two even lined up to take a picture at the gate near the lake. The lane was quite long but they had time to kill and the view was beautiful. <br/>“Do you want to go first or should I go first?” It was about to be their turn soon and Shosei was preparing his camera for it already. <br/>“Why don’t we take one together? As a memory for this day?” </p><p>“But what if someone recognises us?” It wasn’t like he didn’t want to take a picture with Sukai – no he would love that – but the fear to be recognised and that it would cut their trip short was there.  <br/>“The girl behind us is a foreigner. She has surely no idea who we are.” <br/>It was a brave assumption, but he was right. The chance that a foreigner would recognise them was sadly rather small.  </p><p>However, when he handed the girl behind them who was wearing a hoodie that he believed to have seen Takumi wearing, too, and asked her to take a photo of them in English, her eyes got big and there seemed to be a blush on her face. But the chance was bigger that she was just surprised to be approached by two handsome guys. </p><p>Together they went on the small dock under the gate, but then Shosei realised that he had forgotten to ask Sukai what pose they should do. The line was still long and he didn’t want to bother the girl too longer than they had to. Yet Sukai just laid his arms around Shosei and pulled him closer. Both of them just smiled and made his peace sign for the picture. It felt natural and yet Shosei’s heart beat like crazy. He was glad when the girl gave them a sign that the picture was taken and he returned to retrieve the camera. </p><p>The picture turned out to be successful and kind of cute, thus he thanked their help and offered to return the favour. The girl’s face had turned even redder by now, but she went on the dock to pose. <br/>“I think the earrings she is wearing are the ones Ren wore in the audition.” Sukai said with a grin. <br/>“Oh no. You think we were caught?” <br/>“It could be coincidence. The set was popular, wasn’t it?” <br/>“Yeah, thanks to Ren.” </p><p>Yet they were able to continue the day without problems. They decided to save Sho’s sandwiches for the actual stargazing later, thus they tried local snacks first. At first, the eggs that were cooked in volcano water looked scary, but since they had Sukai’s colour he insisted on trying those and actually they were quite tasty. For a moment they considered bringing some of those eggs as souvenir for the other members – the eggs promised a 7 year longer life – but there was Kawashiri ‘I dislike more foods than I own white socks’ Ren in their group and eggs were on said list, thus they bought onsen manju ultimately which was something all members approved off.  </p><p>The town was small but beautiful and at every corner Shosei stopped to take some more pictures, thus making the trip worth it already. Every once in a while, Sukai also became the motive for his pictures and in a way, Shosei envied Sukai for being able to be the perfect photo model. No matter in which moment he aimed his camera at the taller one he looked flawless.  </p><p>Ultimately, the sun started to go down, but the two of them hadn’t finished their food tour yet. To warm themselves up before the night broke, they got themselves one of the famous local noodle soups. Once they had finished those, the night had settled and the two started to look for a good spot to stargaze.  </p><p>The stars were still shy and only a few clouds grazed the sky, but eventually they found a spot at the shore of the lake. Shosei laid the blankets Sho had given them on the ground and they both made themselves comfortable. It was a little strange to sit on your face and the one of your members, but the peaceful atmosphere made them forget about it soon. No words were exchanged, but it wasn’t an awkward silence.  </p><p>Still, being so close to Sukai made Shosei’s heart beat faster and his face feel warm. He felt somewhat bashful being so close to him but it was bearable. The moment felt nice. There was some nervousness being that close to the person who felt more like a friend to him, but he cherrished that. He enjoyed being so close to him and they had that moment just for themselves. </p><p>Besides their rocky start, Sukai was the member Shosei felt the most comfortable around. His calm aura was so unlike the other members’ ones and behind his somewhat hard looks there was a kind and soft core. Being around Sukai made him feel protected and safe in a way. Not that he truly needed to be protected but knowing that no matter what would happen the other one would be there and fight for you was a nice feeling.  </p><p>This feeling was only emphasised when Sukai suddenly laid an arm around him and pulled him closer. “You’re warm.”, mumbled the brown haired one. <br/>“You should have dressed warmer in the morning.” The scold was only half heartly done because actually Shosei liked that new position. Being so close to Sukai made the moment even more perfect and he doubted that the other was feeling cold for real. The chest he was leaning against felt warm just like the arm around him.  </p><p>The silence continued until the last clouds disappeared and the night sky showed itself in its true beauty. Countless stars and constellations illuminated the night and it was exact the view Shosei had hoped for. <br/>He was about to ask Sukai what he thought about it, but when he tilted his head to look into the brown haired one's face, he saw him being in awe. </p><p>Sukai’s mouth was slightly opened as if he had been about to say something but got distracted by the beauty above him and his eyes were glued to the sky.  <br/>Seeing Sukai like that was a sight itself. It was rare for the taller one to display such an admiration openly. His pokerface might have been de facto nothing but a myth, but his facial expressions were much more subdued than the ones of other members. To see him being amazed just like in that moment made Shosei feel happy, too. It had been worth the small risk. </p><p>“It’s beautiful, Shosei.” were the first words Sukai was finally able to say and secretly Shosei had expected those. His face had told him that much already. <br/>“So, I didn’t promise too much?” <br/>“Not at all.” To his surprise Sukai pulled him even closer so that Shosei had no choise but to sit down between Sukai’s long legs. Their height difference wasn’t that much, but that position made him feel small in a way. </p><p>Sukai’s eyes stayed glued to the firmament a little longer and Shosei used that moment to introduce him to various constellations. “Those are the Pleiades. I think you remember those from the recording of the audio book, they were part of Ren’s story. And see that reddish dot next to them? That’s the mars. And the point near the moon is the Saturn.” </p><p>Shosei had no idea how long it took him to talk about everything he knew, but when he finally finished both of Sukai’s arms enclosed him in a close hug. “Thank you for this. Thank you so much.” <br/>The intimacy of this moment and the closeness made Shosei’s heart turn into a humming bird and he was sure that his face resembled a tomato, but he hugged his friend and crush back. “You’re always welcome. I’m glad I could finally show you this.” More than being excited and somewhat nervous about being so close to Sukai, Shosei was glad that everything went as planned. He had made Sukai happy and that was the thing that mattered the most this night.  </p><p>When Shosei thought Sukai was breaking the hug, something unexpected happened.  <br/>Instead of fully pulling away from the orange haired one Sukai actually pulled Shosei’s head closer to himself and gave him a kiss on the forehead. Shosei’s eyes widened for shock and he was unable to form a coherent thought. There was no way that this had been real. “I wouldn’t want to share such a magical moment with anyone but you.” It had to be a dream. There was no way that there was the chance that Sukai had similar feelings. <br/>“Well, tha- that's what best friends do for each other, isn’t it?” </p><p>“No.” That ‘no’ was even more unexpected than the forehead kiss earlier, but Shosei still didn’t even want to think of the possibility that there were mutual feelings. Too afraid he was that he was just overinterpreting things. “Shosei, you are so much more than a friend for me and I think that’s mutual, isn’t it?” </p><p>Then Sukai said it out loud and a part of Shosei wanted to shout ‘yes’ at him, but it merely came out as a whisper. The sheer number of things he felt in that moment - happiness, nervosity, excitement, disbelief and love – took away his voice.  <br/>And lastly, Sukai took away his breath when he sealed their lips. </p><p>The kiss was shy and testing from his side, too, and the overwhelming feelings he was going through at that moment made Shosei to react slowly, but it didn’t make the kiss or the situation in general any less perfect. Even dreams couldn’t have painted a more perfect picture than him and Sukai kissing under the moon and stars.  </p><p>After they parted, Shosei looked into Sukai’s eyes and he felt like he was seeing the stars reflecting in those. He was even more stunning than usually and Shosei couldn’t help but to lean into another kiss. The brown haired one accepted it and laid a hand on his cheek to make sure that Shosei stayed in place. The hand was warm and for the time being Shosei forgot about the chilly air. </p><p>The next time they were able to part from each other Shosei finally found his voice again. “Yes Sukai, those feelings are mutual.” <br/>“No shit sherlock.” There was a mischievous grin on Sukai’s face and of course, Shosei hadn’t needed to say it – his actions had spoken for him – but he had felt like he needed to say it to wrap it up fully. <br/>But that smile... It annoyed him a little. “Don’t ruin the mood.” <br/>“Me? Never.” The grin stayed but it became a little softer. “Your eyes shine like the stars.” </p><p>“Better.” Now Shosei also had to crack a smile. “I thought the exact same thing earlier.” <br/>“I don’t know whether I want to watch them or the night sky.” <br/>“Let’s watch the night sky. You can watch my eyes on any other day.” <br/>“Even this close?” </p><p>“In light of what we did earlier, you can hug me to look into my eyes for 4 to 5 seconds in public.” <br/>“45 seconds? You are so generous, Purin.” <br/>“Sukai, that’s not how I meant it.” Yet he always enjoyed such playful banters with Sukai. The other one just loved to misinterpret his words. “Naoto comes to pick us up soon and who knows when we have the next chance to stargaze. We can make out in our rooms at any day.” </p><p>“Was that an invite?”  <br/>Only when Sukai replied Shosei realised what he had said earlier. He hadn’t meant to be that blunt, but it seemed like his feelings had taken over for a second.  “Shut up and look up.” <br/>As another memory of that day, Shosei tried to capture their view, but it was indeed impossible to capture the true beauty of it. But the truly important memories were saved in his heart forever. </p><p>Hence, when Naoto arrived to pick them up, he didn’t feel sad about leaving this magical place. He could return one day and the most important thing – that thing he and Sukai were now – returned with him to the dorm along with the memories. Everything had been so much better than he had dreamed of.  <br/>Also, it had gotten cold and Shosei was glad about the warm car. He couldn’t risk becoming sick now.  </p><p>“Wait, I think we forgot something.” Sukai suddenly said when they were half way on the way to their dorm.  <br/>“Don’t worry. I took the blankets.” Shosei’s camera was still around his neck, he could feel his phone in his pocket and his bag felt heavy enough to still carry his keys and wallet. His bag was laying in front of him on his feet as well as the bag carrying the souvenirs for the other members. Thus, he had no idea what they were missing. <br/>“Sho’s sandwiches! We haven’t eaten them.” </p><p>Indeed, Shosei also had forgotten about those. He had been too distracted by the local specialities and the guy next to him. But Sho would be disappointed if they didn’t eat those and no one wanted to make their leader disappointed. “True. But I’m not hungry.” Eating them for breakfast could be an option, but Shosei had some perishable foods in his room that needed to be eaten soon. </p><p>“Wait, you two have sandwiches? I had no time to go to the conbini to get something earlier but I was busy the whole evening with your schedules... Planning schedules for 11 members is hard.” Naoto suddenly said. <br/>One look towards Sukai told Shosei they were sharing the same thought and they handed over the sandwiches to their poor stressed manager.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hello~<br/>Yes the Star era is over, but I'm not out of Star related plots yet. Or WIPs... Or uwu feelings.<br/>Challenger trailer didn't give me much inspiration yet. I made up a theory about the MV plot, but I will wait for the next one (and hopefully finish another WIP before)<br/>Anyone please take me on such a date, too, thank you.<br/>See you~</p><p>PS: Yes, this is also half a tourist guide for Hakone cause it was literally my favourite day trip during my time in Japan.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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